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Sutherland and Powers nail the overall at Joe Martin
Team Type 1's Chris Jones wins the men's crit, while Powers locks in her overall victory by winning the crit
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On the final day of the Joe Martin Stage Race, a technical criterium with over 100 feet of climbing per one-mile lap, OUCH-Maxxis played perfect defense to secure Rory Sutherland’s third consecutive victory.
At the race’s finish, it was Team Type 1’s Chris Jones and Luis Amaran of Colavita-Sutter Home emerging from the remnants of a 10-rider break to finish first and second in the stage, respectively. Amaran’s teammate, Lucas Sebastian Haedo, won the field sprint, putting him on the podium for the third time in the three days.
2009 Joe Martin Stage Race
- Final Standings
- Men
- Overall winner: Rory Sutherland (OUCH-Maxxis)
- Final Team GC winner: Team Bissell
- Stage 1 winner: Ben Jacques-Maynes (Team Bissell)
- Stage 2 winner: Lucas Sebastian Haedo (Colavita-Sutter Homes)
- Stage 3 winner: Haedo
- Stage 4 winner: Chris Jones (Team Type 1)
- Women
- Overall winner: Alison Powers (Team Type 1)
- Final Team GC winner: Webcor Builders
- Stage 1 winner: Powers
- Stage 2 winner: Jo Kiesanowski (Tibco)
- Stage 3 winner: Laura Van Gilder (Mellow Mushroom)
- Stage 4 winner: Powers
“Today’s stage played out the same as it has the last two years,” said Sutherland, whose teammates spent the entire race on the front of the field, feathering the gap to a large but dangerous break that emerged roughly 45 minutes into the 90-minute race.
In addition to Jones and Amaran, the breakaway, which hovered at around 30 seconds in front of the field, contained Francois Parisien (Planet Energy), Johnathan Cantwell (Fly V Australia), Jacob Erker (Kelly Benefit Strategies), Eric Sanderson (Jelly Belly), Scott Stewart (Waste Management), and Darren Lill (Team Type 1).
Lill, who sat only 28 seconds back on Sutherland in the overall standings going into the stage, was the leader on the road for the second day in a road.
However, when Amaran attacked with six laps to go, it was Jones covering the move and quickly establishing a gap over the disintegrating breakaway.
“I was trying to defend for Darren, hoping he would come across,” said Jones. “Amaran was really strong today, and I was surprised to beat him in the sprint. But it was really nice to get a win because we’ve been close all week.”
For Sutherland, the overall victory helped solidify an up-and-down spring campaign. “It’s taken me a longer time to get my form this year,” said Sutherland, who suffered through injuries earlier in the season. “But today we showed what we can do as a team.”
Following Sutherland in the overall standings were Team Bissell’s Ben Jacques-Maynes in second and Jeremy Vennell. With three riders in the top ten, Team Bissell took the team GC title and helped solidify its lead in the team NRC classification.
Powers wins, and … wins
When asked after Saturday’s road race how she planned on defending her overall lead on the final stage, race leader Alison Powers of Team Type 1 said, frankly, “win.”
On Sunday at the Joe Martin Stage Race, that’s exactly what Powers did.
With four laps remaining in the women’s hour-long criterium, Powers countered a flurry of attacks from the top general classification riders, including her teammate, Kori Seehafer, and surged out to a large gap on the dwindling field.
Powers rode alone for the rest of the race and crossed the line with a large smile.
In the field sprint for second, Powers' teammate, Jen McRae of Austin, Texas, narrowly edged Ruth Corset of Jazz Apple.
“You don’t win unless you take risks,” said Powers of her strategy. “When the race leader is off the front, there’s often confusion over who should chase. I think that benefited me today.”
Powers credits much of her recent success — she placed second overall at the Tour of the Gila a week prior to this event — to her time spent racing with the women’s national team in Europe last year. “I’ve been able to apply everything I learned while I was suffering over in Europe to winning races here,” she said.
Katheryn Curri Mattis of Webcor Builders finished with the field to maintain second place overall with Katharine Carroll of Team Tibco third overall.
